Ted Snider

Sometimes the worst gaffes President Biden makes are not the ones in which he forgets the truth, but the ones in which he forgets not to tell the truth, or worse, when he forgets not to tell that he is not going to tell the truth. That’s what Biden did on November 4. A just … Continue reading “Biden Says Iran Deal Is Dead and That He Won’t Say Iran Deal Is Dead”

On December 21, President Volodymyr Zelensky went to Washington to meet with President Biden and to address the Congress. The meeting comes at a time when pressure for negotiations and for a diplomatic settlement are intensifying. Both France and Germany have advocated for talks that include discussions of Russia’s security concerns. National Security Advisor Jake … Continue reading “Zelensky Goes to Washington: Some Key Questions”

Five statements made over a period of a few days by high level government officials received very little media attention. When combined, though, they produce a pattern that could make headlines. On December 1, French President Emmanuel Macron held talks with President Biden. Camouflaged by a joint statement that expressed solidarity with the US position … Continue reading “Five Statements That Could Change the War”

As the relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia continues to grow more strained, President Biden keeps arriving at Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s door with gifts to court the kingdom back. And the relationship continues to grow more strained. The essential trouble in the relationship is that the US continues to arrive at … Continue reading “The Troubled US-Saudi Relationship”

Recent statements from Washington on Ukrainian strikes inside Russian territory have sometimes seemed confusing and sometimes seemed untrue. On December 5 and 6, Ukrainian missiles struck three Russian air force bases hundreds of kilometers inside Russian territory, with the furthest target being 390 miles from Ukrainian controlled land. Days later, on December 9, an unnamed … Continue reading “What Does the US Say About Ukrainian Strikes in Russia?”

In recent days, there has been a volley of statements that Ukraine and the West cannot trust that a ceasefire would not be deceptively agreed to by Russia only to use it to fortify itself before violating the ceasefire of convenience. Perhaps the warnings are a rebuttal to National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, former Joint … Continue reading “Not Trusting Russia With a Ceasefire”

On December 1, French President Emmanuel Macron went to Washington for the first state visit of the Biden administration. After the pageantry, presents, hand holding and flattering words of fraternity and solidarity, Macron faced the gathered press. "We will never urge Ukrainians to make a compromise that will not be acceptable for them." "That," said … Continue reading “How the Mainstream Media Misses the Money Quote”

The war in Ukraine is stretching the NATO alliance. The pull is still gentle and the cracks still small. But the potentially endless duration of the war, the economic suffering it has caused in Europe and even disagreements over causes and solutions is stretching the alliance. It is sometimes forgotten that Turkey is a member … Continue reading “How Aligned Is the Atlantic Alliance?”

As the war in Ukraine grinds on, cracks are forming in unexpected places. The US is mad at Ukraine, Europe is mad at the US and Europeans are mad at each other. The cracks are neither wide nor structural. But they are there, and they are unexpected. The first crack in the US relationship with … Continue reading “The Ukraine War: Cracks in Unexpected Places”

At the NATO foreign ministers’ summit in Bucharest on November 29, both the foreign ministers of the member states and the Secretary-General of NATO, General Jens Stoltenberg, renewed NATO’s 2008 pledge to welcome Ukraine into NATO. But Stoltenberg’s comments were provocative and insincere in at least three ways. In a “doorstep statement” ahead of the … Continue reading “Stoltenberg’s Provocative Pledge on Ukraine’s NATO Membership”